Colin Wilder

Colin Wilder is an Associate Professor in the Department of History at the University of South Carolina's College of Arts and Sciences. He joined the History Department as an assistant professor in 2016 and was promoted to associate professor with tenure in 2024. Prior to joining the History Department, he served as associate director of the Center for Digital Humanities from 2012, where he was a member of the Library faculty.

Dr. Wilder's educational background includes:

• B.A. in Philosophy from Yale University
• M.A. in History from the University of Chicago
• Ph.D. in History from the University of Chicago

Before joining USC, Dr. Wilder held postdoctoral fellowships at Brown University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Dr. Wilder's research focuses on two primary areas: the history of European classical liberalism, particularly in seventeenth and eighteenth century Germany, and Digital History. His work in German history centers on the Hessian and Rhine-Main region around Frankfurt am Main, examining ideas about freedom, law, constitutionalism, and republicanism. His Digital History research involves applying computational methods like 'distant reading' to early modern historical questions, particularly around liberalism and property law. His scholarship demonstrates a unique interdisciplinary approach that bridges traditional historical research with cutting-edge digital methodologies.

Dr. Wilder's recent scholarly output shows a strong trend toward interdisciplinary work that combines historical research with computational methods. His publications span traditional historical scholarship on German legal and political thought as well as innovative applications of digital tools to historical problems. This dual focus is evident in his monograph Property and the German Idea of Freedom (2024) alongside technical papers on curve pattern recognition in archaeological artifacts. His work demonstrates how digital methods can enhance traditional historical research and open new avenues for understanding historical phenomena.

Dr. Wilder is actively engaged in teaching and service at USC. He teaches courses on Digital History, German History (HIST 338), Modern European History (HIST 102), the History of Constitutionalism and Republicanism (HIST 467, 469), and the History of Capitalism and Business (HIST 370, 377, 778). He is developing extracurricular mini-seminars focused on great works from the history of classical liberal political thought and organizes visiting lectures for Constitution Day commemorations.